System, method and device for planning driving path for vehicle

ABSTRACT

A system, a method and a device for planning a driving path for a vehicle are described. In one example aspect, the device is configured to: analyze sense data to obtain positioning data of vehicles; assign vehicle transportation tasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in the predetermined area in accordance with a predetermined transportation task, each vehicle transportation task including a transportation start point and a transportation end point; plan driving paths for the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicle transportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data; transmit the assigned transportation task and the planned driving path for the unmanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle; and transmit the assigned transportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicle to a mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.17/001,130, filed on Aug. 24, 2020, which is a continuation ofPCT/CN2018/105469, filed on Sep. 13, 2018, which claims priority to andthe benefit of Chinese Patent Application No. 201810157707.1, filed onFeb. 24, 2018. The aforementioned applications of which are incorporatedherein by reference in their entireties.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to intelligent transportation, and moreparticularly, to a system, a method and a device for planning a drivingpath for a vehicle.

BACKGROUND

Currently, in some semi-enclosed application scenarios, such as coastalport areas, highway port areas, campuses, mining areas, etc., there aresituations where unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles operate together.Manned vehicles include scheduled vehicles operating in certain areas,external vehicles, or engineering or maintenance vehicles in the area.

Unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles have different drivingcharacteristics. For example, manned vehicles may adopt more aggressivedriving strategies, while unmanned vehicles usually adopt moreconservative driving strategies. Unmanned vehicles may not be able tounderstand the driving intentions of manned vehicles, so as to predictthe driving behavior of the manned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicles may not be able to determine safe and effective driving paths.Similarly, in some scenarios, drivers of manned vehicles may not be ableto determine and predict the driving behavior of unmanned vehicles,resulting in disorders associated with their driving paths. Furthermore,it is more likely to cause traffic congestions which are difficult toresolve effectively. Therefore, both unmanned vehicles and mannedvehicles have a problem that path planning cannot be performedeffectively for them.

It can be seen that in the related art, in an environment where unmannedvehicles and manned vehicles operate together, there is a problem thatpath planning cannot be performed effectively for unmanned vehicles andmanned vehicles.

SUMMARY

In view of the above, the present disclosure provides a system, a methodand a device for planning a driving path for a vehicle, capable ofsolving the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether.

In an aspect, a system for planning a driving path for a vehicle isprovided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Thesystem includes an area sensing system, a planning device, and a mobiledevice corresponding to a manned vehicle. The area sensing system isconfigured to sense operating conditions of vehicles in a predeterminedarea to obtain sense data, and transmit the sense data to the planningdevice. The planning device is configured to: analyze the sense data toobtain positioning data of the vehicles; assign vehicle transportationtasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in the predeterminedarea in accordance with a predetermined transportation task, eachvehicle transportation task including a transportation start point and atransportation end point; plan driving paths for the unmanned vehicleand the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicle transportationtasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data; transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the unmannedvehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle isenabled to move in accordance with the received driving path andcomplete the received transportation task; and transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicleto the mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle. The mobiledevice is configured to receive the transportation task and the drivingpath from the planning device, and display the transportation task andthe driving path, such that the manned vehicle is enabled to move inaccordance with the driving path displayed by the mobile device andcomplete the transportation task displayed by the mobile device.

In another aspect, a method for planning a driving path for a vehicle isprovided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Themethod includes: analyzing, by a planning device, sense data from anarea sensing system to obtain positioning data of the vehicles, thesense data being obtained by the area sensing system sensing operatingconditions of vehicles in a predetermined area; assigning vehicletransportation tasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in thepredetermined area in accordance with a predetermined transportationtask, each vehicle transportation task including a transportation startpoint and a transportation end point; planning driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicletransportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data;transmitting the assigned transportation task and the planned drivingpath for the unmanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that theunmanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the receiveddriving path and complete the received transportation task; andtransmitting the assigned transportation task and the planned drivingpath for the manned vehicle to a mobile device corresponding to themanned vehicle, such that the mobile device is enabled to display thetransportation task and the driving path and the manned vehicle isenabled to move in accordance with the driving path and complete thetransportation task.

In another aspect, a device for planning a driving path for a vehicle isprovided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Thedevice includes: an analyzing module configured to analyze sense datafrom an area sensing system to obtain positioning data of the vehicles,the sense data being obtained by the area sensing system sensingoperating conditions of vehicles in a predetermined area; an assigningmodule configured to assign vehicle transportation tasks to an unmannedvehicle and a manned vehicle in the predetermined area in accordancewith a predetermined transportation task, each vehicle transportationtask including a transportation start point and a transportation endpoint; a planning module configured to plan driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicletransportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data; atransceiver module configured to transmit the assigned transportationtask and the planned driving path for the unmanned vehicle to theunmanned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle is enabled to move inaccordance with the received driving path and complete the receivedtransportation task, and transmit the assigned transportation task andthe planned driving path for the manned vehicle to a mobile devicecorresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the mobile device isenabled to display the transportation task and the driving path and themanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the driving pathand complete the transportation task.

In another aspect, a device for planning a driving path for a vehicle isprovided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Thedevice includes a processor and at least one memory storing at least onemachine executable instruction. The processor is operative to executethe at least one machine executable instruction to: analyze sense datafrom an area sensing system to obtain positioning data of the vehicles,the sense data being obtained by the area sensing system sensingoperating conditions of vehicles in a predetermined area; assign vehicletransportation tasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in thepredetermined area in accordance with a predetermined transportationtask, each vehicle transportation task including a transportation startpoint and a transportation end point; plan driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicletransportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data;transmit the assigned transportation task and the planned driving pathfor the unmanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the received driving pathand complete the received transportation task; and transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicleto a mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that themobile device is enabled to display the transportation task and thedriving path and the manned vehicle is enabled to move in accordancewith the driving path and complete the transportation task.

According to the technical solutions provided by the embodiments of thepresent disclosure, a planning device for planning paths for vehicles ina predetermined area is provided. The planning device assigns vehicletransportation tasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in thepredetermined area in accordance with a predetermined transportationtask, plans driving paths for the unmanned vehicle and the mannedvehicle based on the transportation task assigned to each vehicle,positioning data of the vehicles obtained by an area sensing system, andmap data, transmits the assigned transportation task and the planneddriving path for the manned vehicle to a mobile device corresponding tothe manned vehicle, and transmits the assigned transportation task andthe planned driving path for the unmanned vehicle to the unmannedvehicle, such that the manned vehicle is enabled to operate inaccordance with the driving path received by the mobile device and theunmanned vehicle is enabled to operate in accordance with the drivingpath received by the vehicle and complete the assigned transportationtask. In this way, unified path planning can be performed effectivelyfor the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle that operate together inthe predetermined area, thereby solving the problem in the related artthat path planning cannot be performed effectively for unmanned vehiclesand manned vehicles in an environment where the unmanned vehicles andthe manned vehicles operate together.

The other features and advantages of the present disclosure will beexplained in the following description, and will become apparent partlyfrom the description or be understood by implementing the presentdisclosure. The objects and other advantages of the present disclosurecan be achieved and obtained from the structures specificallyillustrated in the written description, claims and figures.

In the following, the solutions according to the present disclosure willbe described in detail with reference to the figures and embodiments.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The figures are provided for facilitating further understanding of thepresent disclosure. The figures constitute a portion of the descriptionand can be used in combination with the embodiments of the presentdisclosure to interpret, rather than limiting, the present disclosure.It is apparent to those skilled in the art that the figures describedbelow only illustrate some embodiments of the present disclosure andother figures can be obtained from these figures without applying anyinventive skills. In the figures:

FIG. 1 a is a schematic diagram showing a structure of a system forplanning a driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure;

FIG. 1 b is a block diagram showing a structure of a system for planninga driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a method for planning a driving pathfor a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is another flowchart illustrating a method for planning a drivingpath for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is yet another flowchart illustrating a method for planning adriving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 5 is still another flowchart illustrating a method for planning adriving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a structure of a device for planning adriving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 7 is another block diagram showing a structure of a system forplanning a driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure; and

FIG. 8 is yet another block diagram showing a structure of a system forplanning a driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EMBODIMENTS

In the following, the solutions according to the embodiments of thepresent disclosure will be described clearly and completely withreference to the figures, such that the solutions can be betterunderstood by those skilled in the art. Obviously, the embodimentsdescribed below are only some, rather than all, of the embodiments ofthe present disclosure. All other embodiments that can be obtained bythose skilled in the art based on the embodiments described in thepresent disclosure without any inventive efforts are to be encompassedby the scope of the present disclosure.

In view of the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a system forplanning a driving path for a vehicle to solve this problem. In a systemfor planning a driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment ofthe present disclosure, a planning device assigns vehicle transportationtasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in the predeterminedarea in accordance with a predetermined transportation task, eachvehicle transportation task including a transportation start point and atransportation end point, plans driving paths for the unmanned vehicleand the manned vehicle based on the transportation task assigned to eachvehicle, positioning data of the vehicles obtained by an area sensingsystem, and map data, transmits the assigned transportation task and theplanned driving path for the manned vehicle to a mobile devicecorresponding to the manned vehicle, and transmits the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the unmannedvehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the manned vehicle is enabledto operate in accordance with the driving path received by the mobiledevice corresponding to the vehicle and the unmanned vehicle is enabledto operate in accordance with the driving path received by the vehicleand complete the assigned transportation task. In this way, unified pathplanning can be performed effectively for the unmanned vehicle and themanned vehicle that operate together in the predetermined area, therebysolving the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether.

The above is the core idea of the present disclosure. In order to allowthose skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions inthe embodiments of the present disclosure, and to make the aboveobjects, features and advantages of the embodiments of the presentdisclosure more apparent, the technical solutions in the embodiment ofthe present disclosure will be explained in further detail below withreference to the figures.

FIG. 1 a shows a schematic diagram of a system for planning a drivingpath for a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.The planning system is used to plan the driving paths of unmannedvehicles and manned vehicles in a predetermined area. The predeterminedarea can be a specified area or a designated area in various applicationscenarios, such as a freight area in a coastal port area, a freight areain a highway port area, or a related area in a campus or a mining area.The manned vehicles may include various manned vehicles in apredetermined area, including operating vehicles and engineeringvehicles. For example, in a coastal port area, the manned vehicles mayinclude manned container trucks, engineering vehicles, maintenancevehicles, and the like.

FIG. 1 b shows a block diagram showing a structure of a system forplanning a driving path for a vehicle according to an embodiment of thepresent disclosure. As shown in FIG. 1 a , the system includes an areasensing system 1, a planning device 2, and a mobile device 3corresponding to a manned vehicle (not shown).

The area sensing system 1 is provided in a predetermined area A. Thearea sensing system 1 includes at least one camera and/or at least onelaser radar located on at least one monitoring point. The area sensingsystem 1 is configured to sense operating conditions of vehicles in thepredetermined area A to obtain sense data. The area sensing system 1 canroutinely monitor the operations of the vehicles in the predeterminedarea.

The planning device 2 may be a remote control terminal, or an on-sitecontrol terminal located in the predetermined area. In some applicationscenarios, the planning device 2 can be combined with an existingmanagement control system in the scenarios, and can be provided as amanagement control module of the existing system or as a separatecontrol terminal that can communicate with the existing system. Forexample, in an application scenario of a coastal port area, the planningdevice 2 may be a module in an existing Terminal Operation System (TOS).For example, the planning device 2 can be used as a vehicle managementplanning module in the TOS system and can communicate with a taskmanagement module in the TOS system for obtaining transportation taskinformation and feeding back information on completion of thetransportation task. Alternatively, the planning device 2 can be aseparate vehicle planning management system connected to a TOS systemand communicating with the TOS for e.g., receiving relevant information,such as transportation tasks, issued by the TOS and feeding backinformation on completion of the transportation tasks to the TOS.

The planning device 2 is configured to: analyze the sense data to obtainpositioning data of the vehicles; assign vehicle transportation tasks toan unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in the predetermined area A inaccordance with a predetermined transportation task, each vehicletransportation task including a transportation start point and atransportation end point; plan driving paths for the unmanned vehicleand the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicle transportationtasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data; transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the unmannedvehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle isenabled to move in accordance with the received driving path andcomplete the received transportation task; and transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicleto the mobile device 3 corresponding to the manned vehicle.

The mobile device 3 may be any electronic device with mobility andcapable of communicating and displaying, such as a tablet computer(PAD), a Personal Computer (PC), a smart communication device, and thelike. The correspondence between the mobile device 3 and the mannedvehicle can be pre-established and may last for a long time, or can betemporarily established before the vehicle transportation task isassigned to the manned vehicle. That is, the mobile device 3 can befixed in the manned vehicle or temporarily assigned to the mannedvehicle.

The mobile device 3 is configured to receive the transportation task andthe driving path from the planning device 2, and display thetransportation task and the driving path, such that the manned vehicleis enabled to move in accordance with the driving path displayed by themobile device and complete the transportation task displayed by themobile device.

Further, on the basis of the above-mentioned functions, in someembodiments, the planning device 2 may be further configured to analyzethe sense data, and determine a congested node of a road based on apredetermined congestion class; re-plan a driving path for a vehiclewhose driving path includes a congested node having a predeterminedcongestion level, such that the re-planned driving path does not includeany congested node having the predetermined congestion level; transmitthe re-planned driving path to the unmanned vehicle such that theunmanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the re-planneddriving path; and transmit information on the congested node and/or there-planned path to the mobile device corresponding to the mannedvehicle, such that the mobile device is enabled to perform at least oneof: displaying the received information on the congested node, providinga prompt or warning corresponding to the information on the congestednode, or displaying the re-planned path.

In some other embodiments, the planning device 2 can be furtherconfigured to: analyze the sense data to determine posture data of eachvehicle; predict a driving path and/or driving behavior of the mannedvehicle based on the posture data of each vehicle, to obtain a predictedpath and/or predicted behavior; and transmit the predicted path and/orpredicted behavior of the manned vehicle to an unmanned vehicle within apredetermined range from a current position of the manned vehicle, suchthat the unmanned vehicle is enabled to determine a vehicle operationadjustment operation based on the received predicted path and/orpredicted behavior of the manned vehicle and execute the determinedvehicle operation adjustment operation.

In some other embodiments, the mobile device 3 may further include apositioning unit (such as a GPS positioning unit), and an InertialMeasurement Unit (IMU), or any other device that can achieve positioningand posture measurement. The mobile device 3 can be further configuredto: generate vehicle pose data based on a measurement result from thepositioning unit and a measurement result from the inertial measurementunit while the manned vehicle is moving, and transmit the vehicle posedata of the manned vehicle to the planning device 2. The planning device2 can be further configured to receive the vehicle pose data of themanned vehicle from the mobile device. In this case, the planning device2 being configured to predict the driving path and/or driving behaviorof the manned vehicle may include the planning device 2 being configuredto predict the driving path and/or driving behavior of the mannedvehicle based on the vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle and theposture data of the manned vehicle, to obtain the predicted path and/orpredicted behavior.

The operation principle of the planning device 2 will be describedbelow.

FIG. 2 shows a process flowchart of a method for planning a driving pathfor a vehicle according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Themethod includes the following steps.

At step 21, a planning device analyzes sense data from an area sensingsystem to obtain positioning data of the vehicles. The sense data isobtained by the area sensing system sensing operating conditions ofvehicles in a predetermined area.

At step 22, vehicle transportation tasks are assigned to an unmannedvehicle and a manned vehicle in the predetermined area in accordancewith a predetermined transportation task. Each vehicle transportationtask includes a transportation start point and a transportation endpoint.

At step 23, driving paths are planned for the unmanned vehicle and themanned vehicle based on the assigned vehicle transportation tasks, thevehicle positioning data and map data.

In some embodiments, the planning device may also perform the pathplanning according to some other rules or strategies, for example:

Strategy 1: The driving paths can be planned for the manned vehicle andthe unmanned vehicle in accordance with predetermined road usepermissions and/or road use priorities of the unmanned vehicle and themanned vehicle, respectively.

Strategy 2: The sense data can be analyzed to determine traffic data fora current road, and the driving paths can be planned for the mannedvehicle and the unmanned vehicle based on the traffic data for thecurrent road, respectively.

Strategy 3: The sense data can be analyzed to determine a congested nodeof the current road, and the driving paths can be planned for the mannedvehicle and the unmanned vehicle based on the congested node of theroad.

Any one or combination of the above strategies can be combined with theassigned vehicle transportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data, andthe map data, for use by the planning device to systematically plan thedriving paths for the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle. In aspecific application scenario, other strategies can also be included,which can be specifically set depending on requirements of theapplication scenario.

The present disclosure is not limited to any specific method forplanning the driving paths, which can be set depending on therequirements of specific application scenarios. Any path planningmethod, known in the related art or developed in the future, can beused.

At step 24, the assigned transportation task and the planned drivingpath for the unmanned vehicle are transmitted to the unmanned vehicle,such that the unmanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordance with thereceived driving path and complete the received transportation task.

At step 25, the assigned transportation task and the planned drivingpath for the manned vehicle are transmitted to a mobile devicecorresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the mobile device isenabled to display the transportation task and the driving path and themanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the driving pathand complete the transportation task. According to the technicalsolution provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, a systemfor planning a driving path for a vehicle is provided. A planning deviceassigns vehicle transportation tasks for a manned vehicle and anunmanned vehicle, and plans driving paths for the manned vehicle and theunmanned vehicle. The assigned vehicle transportation task and theplanned driving path for the unmanned vehicle are assigned to theunmanned vehicle, and the assigned vehicle transport task and theplanned driving path for the manned vehicle are assigned to a mobiledevice corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle and the manned vehicle can move in accordance with the drivingpaths planned by the planning device and complete the transportationtasks. In this way, it is possible to perform path planning for unmannedvehicles and manned vehicles, respectively, in an environment where theunmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operate together, therebysolving the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether.

Based on the method shown in FIG. 2 , an embodiment of the presentdisclosure also provides a method for planning a driving path for avehicle. As shown in FIG. 3 , the method further includes the followingsteps in addition to the process included in FIG. 2 .

At step 26, the sense data is analyzed, and a congested node of a roadis determined based on a predetermined congestion class. Here, thepredetermined congestion class may include a plurality of predeterminedcongestion levels.

For example, the predetermined congestion class may include threecongestion levels: severe congestion, ordinary congestion, and slightcongestion, and these three congestion levels correspond to differentcongestion conditions.

At step 27, a driving path is re-planned for a vehicle whose drivingpath includes a congested node having a predetermined congestion level,such that the re-planned driving path does not include any congestednode having the predetermined congestion level.

For example, when the driving path includes a node having the severecongestion level, the path can be re-planned such that the re-planneddriving path does not include any node having the severe congestionlevel, but may include one or more nodes having the slight congestionlevel or no congestion.

At step 28, the re-planned driving path is transmitted to the unmannedvehicle such that the unmanned vehicle is enabled to move in accordancewith the re-planned driving path.

At step 29, information on the congested node and/or the re-planned pathis transmitted to the mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle,such that the mobile device is enabled to perform at least one of:displaying the received information on the congested node, providing aprompt or warning corresponding to the information on the congestednode, or displaying the re-planned path.

That is, the planning device analyzes the sense data, determines acongested node in a road when the road is determined to be congested,and re-plans the driving path for the vehicle whose driving pathincludes the congested node, such that the unmanned vehicle can move inaccordance with the re-planned driving path so as to avoid the congestednode. The planning device transmits the information on the congestednode and/or the re-planned driving path to the mobile terminalcorresponding to the manned vehicle. The mobile terminal displays theinformation on the congested node and provides a prompt or warning,which can alert the driver of the manned vehicle. The mobile terminaldisplays the re-planned driving path, which can be used as a referencein road selection by the driver of the manned vehicle, so as toeffectively avoid the driver's independent selection of a driving paththat may cause a new congestion.

Based on the method shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 , an embodiment of thepresent disclosure also provides a method for planning a driving pathfor a vehicle. As shown in FIG. 4 , the method includes the followingsteps in addition to the method shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 .

At step 41, the planning device analyzes the sense data to determineposture data of each vehicle.

At step 42, a driving path and/or driving behavior of the manned vehicleis predicted based on the posture data of each vehicle, to obtain apredicted path and/or predicted behavior.

Here, the driving path of the manned vehicle may be the actual drivingpath of the manned vehicle. The path may be consistent with the drivingpath planned by the planning device, or may be the path selected by thedriver of the manned vehicle independently, which may be inconsistentwith the driving path planned by the planning device.

At step 43, the predicted path and/or predicted behavior of the mannedvehicle is transmitted to an unmanned vehicle within a predeterminedrange from a current position of the manned vehicle, such that theunmanned vehicle is enabled to determine a vehicle operation adjustmentoperation based on the received predicted path and/or predicted behaviorof the manned vehicle and execute the determined vehicle operationadjustment operation.

With the process shown in FIG. 4 , the planning device can determine theposture data of the vehicle based on the sense data, and predict thedriving path and/or driving behavior of the manned vehicle based on theposture data, to obtain the predicted path and/or predicted behavior.The predicted path and/or predicted behavior can be transmitted to theunmanned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle can determine thevehicle operation adjustment operation based on the received predictedpath and/or predicted behavior of the manned vehicle and execute thedetermined vehicle operation adjustment operation. Thus, the unmannedvehicle can better respond to the driving path or driving behavior ofthe manned vehicle.

Similar to the method shown in FIG. 4 , an embodiment of the presentdisclosure also provides a method for planning a driving path for avehicle. As shown in FIG. 5 , the method includes the following steps inaddition to the method shown in FIG. 2 or FIG. 3 .

At step 51, vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle is received from themobile device.

At step 52, a driving path and/or driving behavior of the manned vehicleis predicted based on the vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle andthe posture data of the manned vehicle, to obtain a predicted pathand/or predicted behavior.

At step 53, the predicted path and/or predicted behavior of the mannedvehicle is transmitted to an unmanned vehicle within a predeterminedrange from a current position of the manned vehicle, such that theunmanned vehicle is enabled to determine a vehicle operation adjustmentoperation based on the received predicted path and/or predicted behaviorof the manned vehicle and execute the determined vehicle operationadjustment operation.

When compared with the method shown in FIG. 4 , the method shown in FIG.5 can obtain more accurate vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle, soas to make a more accurate prediction of the driving path and/or drivingbehavior of the manned vehicle.

Based on the same inventive concept, an embodiment of the presentdisclosure also provides a device for planning a driving path for avehicle.

As shown in FIG. 6 , a device for planning a driving path for a vehicleaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes thefollowing modules.

An analyzing module 61 is configured to analyze sense data from an areasensing system to obtain positioning data of the vehicles. The sensedata is obtained by the area sensing system sensing operating conditionsof vehicles in a predetermined area.

An assigning module 62 is configured to assign vehicle transportationtasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in the predeterminedarea in accordance with a predetermined transportation task. Eachvehicle transportation task includes a transportation start point and atransportation end point.

A planning module 63 is configured to plan driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicletransportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data.

Here, the planning module 63 being configured to plan the driving pathsfor the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle may include the planningmodule 63 being configured to perform at least one of: planning thedriving paths for the manned vehicle and the unmanned vehicle inaccordance with predetermined road use permissions and/or road usepriorities of the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle, respectively;analyzing the sense data to determine traffic data for a current road,and planning the driving paths for the manned vehicle and the unmannedvehicle based on the traffic data for the current road, respectively; oranalyzing the sense data to determine a congested node of the currentroad, and planning the driving paths for the manned vehicle and theunmanned vehicle based on the congested node of the road.

A transceiver module 64 can be configured to transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the unmannedvehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle isenabled to move in accordance with the received driving path andcomplete the received transportation task, and transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicleto a mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that themobile device is enabled to display the transportation task and thedriving path and the manned vehicle is enabled to move in accordancewith the driving path and complete the transportation task.

The planning device assigns vehicle transportation tasks for a mannedvehicle and an unmanned vehicle, and plans driving paths for the mannedvehicle and the unmanned vehicle. The assigned vehicle transportationtask and the planned driving path for the unmanned vehicle are assignedto the unmanned vehicle, and the assigned vehicle transport task and theplanned driving path for the manned vehicle are assigned to a mobiledevice corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle and the manned vehicle can move in accordance with the drivingpaths planned by the planning device and complete the transportationtasks. In this way, it is possible to perform path planning for unmannedvehicles and manned vehicles, respectively, in an environment where theunmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operate together, therebysolving the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether.

In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the planning module63 can be further configured to analyze the sense data, and determine acongested node of a road based on a predetermined congestion class, thepredetermined congestion class including a plurality of predeterminedcongestion levels; and re-plan a driving path for a vehicle whosedriving path includes a congested node having a predetermined congestionlevel, such that the re-planned driving path does not include anycongested node having the predetermined congestion level.

The transceiver module 64 can be further configured to transmit there-planned driving path to the unmanned vehicle such that the unmannedvehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the re-planned drivingpath; and transmit information on the congested node and/or there-planned path to the mobile device corresponding to the mannedvehicle, such that the mobile device is enabled to perform at least oneof: displaying the received information on the congested node, providinga prompt or warning corresponding to the information on the congestednode, or displaying the re-planned path.

The planning device analyzes the sense data, determines a congested nodein a road when the road is determined to be congested, and re-plans thedriving path for the vehicle whose driving path includes the congestednode, such that the unmanned vehicle can move in accordance with there-planned driving path so as to avoid the congested node. The planningdevice transmits the information on the congested node and/or there-planned driving path to the mobile terminal corresponding to themanned vehicle. The mobile terminal displays the information on thecongested node and provides a prompt or warning, which can alert thedriver of the manned vehicle. The mobile terminal displays there-planned driving path, which can be used as a reference in roadselection by the driver of the manned vehicle, so as to effectivelyavoid the driver's independent selection of a driving path that maycause a new congestion.

In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in FIG. 7, the device can further include a predicting module 65.

The analysis module 61 can be further configured to analyze the sensedata to determine posture data of each vehicle.

The predicting module 65 can be configured to predict a driving pathand/or driving behavior of the manned vehicle based on the posture dataof each vehicle, to obtain a predicted path and/or predicted behavior.

The transceiver module 64 can be further configured to transmit thepredicted path and/or predicted behavior of the manned vehicle to anunmanned vehicle within a predetermined range from a current position ofthe manned vehicle, such that the unmanned vehicle is enabled todetermine a vehicle operation adjustment operation based on the receivedpredicted path and/or predicted behavior of the manned vehicle andexecute the determined vehicle operation adjustment operation.

The planning device determines the posture data of the vehicle based onthe sense data, and predicts the driving path and/or driving behavior ofthe manned vehicle based on the posture data, to obtain the predictedpath and/or predicted behavior. The predicted path and/or predictedbehavior is transmitted to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle can determine the vehicle operation adjustment operation basedon the received predicted path and/or predicted behavior of the mannedvehicle and execute the determined vehicle operation adjustmentoperation. Thus, the unmanned vehicle can better respond to the drivingpath or driving behavior of the manned vehicle.

In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the transceivermodule 64 can be further configured to receive vehicle pose data of themanned vehicle from the mobile device. The predicting module 65 beingconfigured to predict the driving path and/or driving behavior of themanned vehicle may include the predicting module 65 being configured topredict the driving path and/or driving behavior of the manned vehiclebased on the vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle and the posturedata of the manned vehicle, to obtain the predicted path and/orpredicted behavior.

The planning device receives the vehicle pose data from the mobiledevice corresponding to the manned vehicle, and can obtain more accuratevehicle pose data of the manned vehicle, so as to make a more accurateprediction of the driving path and/or driving behavior of the mannedvehicle.

Based on the same inventive concept, an embodiment of the presentdisclosure also provides a device for planning a driving path for avehicle.

As shown in FIG. 8 , a device for planning a driving path for a vehicleaccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure includes aprocessor 81 and at least one memory 82 storing at least one machineexecutable instruction. The processor 81 is operative to execute the atleast one machine executable instruction to: analyze sense data from anarea sensing system to obtain positioning data of the vehicles, thesense data being obtained by the area sensing system sensing operatingconditions of vehicles in a predetermined area; assign vehicletransportation tasks to an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle in thepredetermined area in accordance with a predetermined transportationtask, each vehicle transportation task including a transportation startpoint and a transportation end point; plan driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle based on the assigned vehicletransportation tasks, the vehicle positioning data and map data;transmit the assigned transportation task and the planned driving pathfor the unmanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle is enabled to move in accordance with the received driving pathand complete the received transportation task; and transmit the assignedtransportation task and the planned driving path for the manned vehicleto a mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that themobile device is enabled to display the transportation task and thedriving path and the manned vehicle is enabled to move in accordancewith the driving path and complete the transportation task.

Here, the processor 81 being operative to execute the at least onemachine executable instruction to plan the driving paths for theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle may include the processor 81being operative to execute the at least one machine executableinstruction to perform at least one of: planning the driving paths forthe manned vehicle and the unmanned vehicle in accordance withpredetermined road use permissions and/or road use priorities of theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle, respectively; analyzing thesense data to determine traffic data for a current road, and planningthe driving paths for the manned vehicle and the unmanned vehicle basedon the traffic data for the current road, respectively; or analyzing thesense data to determine a congested node of the current road, andplanning the driving paths for the manned vehicle and the unmannedvehicle based on the congested node of the road.

The planning device assigns vehicle transportation tasks for a mannedvehicle and an unmanned vehicle, and plans driving paths for the mannedvehicle and the unmanned vehicle. The assigned vehicle transportationtask and the planned driving path for the unmanned vehicle are assignedto the unmanned vehicle, and the assigned vehicle transport task and theplanned driving path for the manned vehicle are assigned to a mobiledevice corresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle and the manned vehicle can move in accordance with the drivingpaths planned by the planning device and complete the transportationtasks. In this way, it is possible to perform path planning for unmannedvehicles and manned vehicles, respectively, in an environment where theunmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operate together, therebysolving the problem in the related art that path planning cannot beperformed effectively for unmanned vehicles and manned vehicles in anenvironment where the unmanned vehicles and the manned vehicles operatetogether.

In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor 81can be further operative to execute the at least one machine executableinstruction to: analyze the sense data, and determine a congested nodeof a road based on a predetermined congestion class, the predeterminedcongestion class including a plurality of predetermined congestionlevels; re-plan a driving path for a vehicle whose driving path includesa congested node having a predetermined congestion level, such that there-planned driving path does not include any congested node having thepredetermined congestion level; transmit the re-planned driving path tothe unmanned vehicle such that the unmanned vehicle is enabled to movein accordance with the re-planned driving path; and transmit informationon the congested node and/or the re-planned path to the mobile devicecorresponding to the manned vehicle, such that the mobile device isenabled to perform at least one of: displaying the received informationon the congested node, providing a prompt or warning corresponding tothe information on the congested node, or displaying the re-plannedpath.

The planning device analyzes the sense data, determines a congested nodein a road when the road is determined to be congested, and re-plans thedriving path for the vehicle whose driving path includes the congestednode, such that the unmanned vehicle can move in accordance with there-planned driving path so as to avoid the congested node. The planningdevice transmits the information on the congested node and/or there-planned driving path to the mobile terminal corresponding to themanned vehicle. The mobile terminal displays the information on thecongested node and provides a prompt or warning, which can alert thedriver of the manned vehicle. The mobile terminal displays there-planned driving path, which can be used as a reference in roadselection by the driver of the manned vehicle, so as to effectivelyavoid the driver's independent selection of a driving path that maycause a new congestion.

In some other embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor 81can be further operative to execute the at least one machine executableinstruction to: analyze the sense data to determine posture data of eachvehicle; predict a driving path and/or driving behavior of the mannedvehicle based on the posture data of each vehicle, to obtain a predictedpath and/or predicted behavior; and transmit the predicted path and/orpredicted behavior of the manned vehicle to an unmanned vehicle within apredetermined range from a current position of the manned vehicle, suchthat the unmanned vehicle is enabled to determine a vehicle operationadjustment operation based on the received predicted path and/orpredicted behavior of the manned vehicle and execute the determinedvehicle operation adjustment operation.

The planning device determines the posture data of the vehicle based onthe sense data, and predicts the driving path and/or driving behavior ofthe manned vehicle based on the posture data, to obtain the predictedpath and/or predicted behavior. The predicted path and/or predictedbehavior is transmitted to the unmanned vehicle, such that the unmannedvehicle can determine the vehicle operation adjustment operation basedon the received predicted path and/or predicted behavior of the mannedvehicle, and execute the determined vehicle operation adjustmentoperation. Thus, the unmanned vehicle can better respond to the drivingpath or driving behavior of the manned vehicle.

In other embodiments of the present disclosure, the processor 81 can befurther operative to execute the at least one machine executableinstruction to receive vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle from themobile device. The processor 81 being operative to execute the at leastone machine executable instruction to predict the driving path and/ordriving behavior of the manned vehicle may include the processor 81being operative to execute the at least one machine executableinstruction to predict the driving path and/or driving behavior of themanned vehicle based on the vehicle pose data of the manned vehicle andthe posture data of the manned vehicle, to obtain the predicted pathand/or predicted behavior.

The planning device receives the vehicle pose data from the mobiledevice corresponding to the manned vehicle, and can obtain more accuratevehicle pose data of the manned vehicle, so as to make a more accurateprediction of the driving path and/or driving behavior of the mannedvehicle.

The basic principles of the present disclosure have been described abovewith reference to the embodiments. However, it can be appreciated bythose skilled in the art that all or any of the steps or components ofthe method or device according to the present disclosure can beimplemented in hardware, firmware, software or any combination thereofin any computing device (including a processor, a storage medium, etc.)or a network of computing devices. This can be achieved by those skilledin the art using their basic programing skills based on the descriptionof the present disclosure.

It can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that all or part ofthe steps in the method according to the above embodiment can beimplemented in hardware following instructions of a program.

The program can be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Theprogram, when executed, may include one or any combination of the stepsin the method according to the above embodiment.

Further, the functional units in the embodiments of the presentdisclosure can be integrated into one processing module or can bephysically separate, or two or more units can be integrated into onemodule. Such integrated module can be implemented in hardware orsoftware functional units. When implemented in software functional unitsand sold or used as a standalone product, the integrated module can bestored in a computer readable storage medium.

It can be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the embodimentsof the present disclosure can be implemented as a method, a system or acomputer program product. The present disclosure may include purehardware embodiments, pure software embodiments and any combinationthereof. Also, the present disclosure may include a computer programproduct implemented on one or more computer readable storage mediums(including, but not limited to, magnetic disk storage and opticalstorage) containing computer readable program codes.

The present disclosure has been described with reference to theflowcharts and/or block diagrams of the method, device (system) andcomputer program product according to the embodiments of the presentdisclosure. It can be appreciated that each process and/or block in theflowcharts and/or block diagrams, or any combination thereof, can beimplemented by computer program instructions. Such computer programinstructions can be provided to a general computer, a dedicatedcomputer, an embedded processor or a processor of any other programmabledata processing device to constitute a machine, such that theinstructions executed by a processor of a computer or any otherprogrammable data processing device can constitute means forimplementing the functions specified by one or more processes in theflowcharts and/or one or more blocks in the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computerreadable memory that can direct a computer or any other programmabledata processing device to operate in a particular way. Thus, theinstructions stored in the computer readable memory constitute amanufacture including instruction means for implementing the functionsspecified by one or more processes in the flowcharts and/or one or moreblocks in the block diagrams.

These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computeror any other programmable data processing device, such that the computeror the programmable data processing device can perform a series ofoperations/steps to achieve a computer-implemented process. In this way,the instructions executed on the computer or the programmable dataprocessing device can provide steps for implementing the functionsspecified by one or more processes in the flowcharts and/or one or moreblocks in the block diagrams.

While the embodiments of the present disclosure have described above,further alternatives and modifications can be made to these embodimentsby those skilled in the art in light of the basic inventive concept ofthe present disclosure. The claims as attached are intended to cover theabove embodiments and all these alternatives and modifications that fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure.

Obviously, various modifications and variants can be made to the presentdisclosure by those skilled in the art without departing from the spiritand scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, these modifications andvariants are to be encompassed by the present disclosure if they fallwithin the scope of the present disclosure as defined by the claims andtheir equivalents.

What is claimed is:
 1. A device for providing driving paths to both anunmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle within a predetermined area,comprising at least one processor that is configured to: transmit afirst driving path to the unmanned vehicle to enable the unmannedvehicle to move in accordance with the first driving path; transmit asecond driving path to a mobile device corresponding to the mannedvehicle to enable a display of the second driving path to a driver ofthe manned vehicle; predict an actual driving path of the manned vehiclein response to a deviation of a position of the manned vehicle from thesecond driving path; and transmit information about the predicted actualdriving path of the manned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle to enable theunmanned vehicle to adjust the second driving path in response to thedeviation.
 2. The device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processoris configured to: adjust the first driving path of the unmanned vehiclebased on the predicted actual driving path of the manned vehicle; andtransmit the adjusted first driving path to the unmanned vehicle.
 3. Thedevice of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is configured to:receive data indicating an operating condition of the unmanned vehicleand the manned vehicle within the predetermined area; determine a firstposition of the unmanned vehicle and a second position of the mannedvehicle; determine the first driving path determined based on the firstposition; and determine the second driving path based on the secondposition.
 4. The device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processoris configured to: determine that the predetermined area comprises acongested area having a congestion level that exceeds a threshold;transmit a third driving path to the unmanned vehicle to enable theunmanned vehicle to avoid the congested area; transmit, to the mannedvehicle, information about the congested area or a fourth driving pathto enable the driver of the manned vehicle to avoid the congested area.5. The device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor isconfigured to: assign a first transportation task to the unmannedvehicle and a second transportation task to the manned vehicle, whereineach transportation task comprises a transportation start point and atransportation end point; transmit the first transportation task to theunmanned vehicle; and transmit the second transportation task to themanned vehicle.
 6. The device of claim 1, wherein the device forms apart of a Terminal Operation System (TOS).
 7. The device of claim 1,wherein the device comprises a remote-control terminal or an on-sitecontrol terminal located in the predetermined area.
 8. A method formanaging both an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle within apredetermined area, comprising: transmitting a first driving path to theunmanned vehicle to enable the unmanned vehicle to move in accordancewith the first driving path; transmitting a second driving path to amobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle to enable a display ofthe second driving path to a driver of the manned vehicle; predicting anactual driving path of the manned vehicle in response to a deviation ofa position of the manned vehicle from the second driving path; andtransmitting information about the predicted actual driving path of themanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle to enable the unmanned vehicle toadjust the second driving path in response to the deviation.
 9. Themethod of claim 8, wherein the transmitting of the information about thepredicted actual driving path of the manned vehicle comprises: adjustingthe first driving path of the unmanned vehicle based on the predictedactual driving path of the manned vehicle; and transmitting the adjustedfirst driving path to the unmanned vehicle.
 10. The method of claim 8,comprising: receiving data indicating an operating condition of theunmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle within the predetermined area;determining a first position of the unmanned vehicle and a secondposition of the manned vehicle; determining the first driving pathdetermined based on the first position; and determining the seconddriving path based on the second position.
 11. The method of claim 10,wherein the first driving path and the second driving path aredetermined based on road use permissions and/or road use priorities ofthe unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle respectively.
 12. The methodof claim 8, comprising: determining that the predetermined areacomprises a congested area having a congestion level that exceeds athreshold; transmitting a third driving path to the unmanned vehicle toenable the unmanned vehicle to avoid the congested area; transmitting,to the manned vehicle, information about the congested area or a fourthdriving path to enable the driver of the manned vehicle to avoid thecongested area.
 13. The method of claim 8, comprising: assigning a firsttransportation task to the unmanned vehicle and a second transportationtask to the manned vehicle, wherein each transportation task comprises atransportation start point and a transportation end point; transmittingthe first transportation task to the unmanned vehicle; and transmittingthe second transportation task to the manned vehicle.
 14. A system formanaging both an unmanned vehicle and a manned vehicle within apredetermined area, comprising: a planning module configured todetermine a first driving path for the unmanned vehicle and a seconddriving path for the manned vehicle, a predicting module configured topredict an actual driving path of the manned vehicle in response to adeviation of a position of the manned vehicle from the second drivingpath; and a transceiver module configured to: transmit the first drivingpath to the unmanned vehicle to enable the unmanned vehicle to move inaccordance with the first driving path, transmit the second driving pathto a mobile device corresponding to the manned vehicle to enable adisplay of the second driving path to a driver of the manned vehicle,and transmit information about the predicted actual driving path of themanned vehicle to the unmanned vehicle to enable the unmanned vehicle toadjust the second driving path in response to the deviation.
 15. Thesystem of claim 14, further comprising: an analyzing module configuredto: determine a first position of the unmanned vehicle and a secondposition of the manned vehicle based on data indicating an operatingcondition of the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle within thepredetermined area; wherein the planning module is configured todetermine the first driving path determined based on the first positionand determine the second driving path based on the second position. 16.The system of claim 15, wherein the transceiver module is incommunication with an area sensing system to receive the data indicatingthe operating condition of the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehiclewithin the predetermined area.
 17. The system of claim 14, wherein theplanning module is configured to determine the first driving path andthe second driving path based on road use permissions and/or road usepriorities of the unmanned vehicle and the manned vehicle respectively.18. The system of claim 14, further comprising: an assigning moduleconfigured to assign a first transportation task to the unmanned vehicleand a second transportation task to the manned vehicle, wherein eachtransportation task comprises a transportation start point and atransportation end point, wherein the transceiver module is configuredto transmit the first transportation task to the unmanned vehicle andtransmit the second transportation task to the manned vehicle
 19. Thesystem of claim 14, wherein the planning module is configured to adjustthe first driving path of the unmanned vehicle based on the predictedactual driving path of the manned vehicle, and wherein the transceivermodule is configured to transmit the adjusted first driving path to theunmanned vehicle.
 20. The system of claim 14, where the system is incommunication with a Terminal Operation System (TOS).